Life of Mozart

——340 DIE ZAUBERFLOTE.Papageno's grief is like that of a child, expressed in genuineearnest, yet of a nature to raise a smile on the lips of grownuppeople. This double nature is well expressed, for example,in the violin passagewhich has something comic in its very accents of grief.The form of this lengthy scene is altogether free. Withoutalterationof time or measure the music follows the variouspoints of the scene, declamatory passages interrupting thelong-drawn threads of melody sometimes with great effect,and descriptive phrases repeated at suitable places to keepthe whole together. Thus the characteristic passageoccurs three times to the words: " Drum geschieht es mirschon recht !" " Sterben macht der Lieb' ein End," and" Papageno frisch hinauf, ende deinen Lebenslauf!" At theclose, when he seems really on the point of hanging himself,the time becomes slower, and a minor key serves to expressthe, gloom of despair. But the three boys appear and remindhim of his bells ; at once his courage rises, and as hetinkles the bells he calls upon his sweetheart to appear withall the confidence and joy of a child. At the command ofthe boys he looks round, sees her, and the two feather-clothedbeings contemplate each other with amazement and delight,approaching nearer and nearer, until at last they fall intoeach other's arms. The comic point of the stammering " Papa-pa-," uttered by them both, slowly at first, then withincreasing rapidity until they embrace with the exclamation," !Papageno " and " Papagena "! was due to Schickaneder's